May 2, 2025

The Best of April 2025

by Liz Heather in Beauty, Best of NYC, Food, Ideas, Links, Movies, Personal, Products, Recipes, Reviews

Spring marches on! Is that good? Bad? I am the wrong person to ask. But May is here so we keep going. Here’s what went down last month!

The best tweets of the month can be found over here.
I compiled a separate list of my favourite White Lotus tweets since the season ended (includes spoilers), too.
I read and reviewed Viola Davis’ new memoir - as well as Ina Garten’s.
I did that viral onion ring snack recipe and it was really good. This is definitely an end-of-times recipe, though. Absolutely not fussy in any way.

Nathan and I went to Central Park for the first time without Baby Dog and it was brutal but nice at the same time. Why does it feel like every person on earth right now has at least four dogs? It’s an epidemic.

The gluten-free restaurant Thyme & Tonic remains my favourite place on the Upper West Side. That popcorn chicken is everything.

Gluten-free popcorn chicken at Thyme & Tonic, Upper West Side

The mini cubano at Guantanamera reminded me (and fell flat) of how good the best cubano on this planet is at La Cubana in Toronto. So that was sad.
The summer felt friends were released and I might have bought them all because their faces bring me joy. (Nope, absolutely nobody’s depressed over here.)

The happy hour at STK midtown might be one of the most reasonably-priced places still in this city. With a patio, too!

I saw a few shows!
- Death Becomes Her - absolutely wonderful. The costumes were beyond gorgeous and fun. It was really funny and everyone did such a great job. Better than the movie.
- Wonderful Town - so good! My dear friend Jessie is in it, but I swear I’m not biased at all. I loved the dancing; there isn’t enough modern tap these days.
- Maybe Happy Ending - a new level of terrible. More thoughts over here.

I started using hydrocolloid bandages (that I cut up to smaller sizes) instead of branded pimple patches (that are more expensive) and they’ve been working so well. Such a cheaper option and they are way bigger than the Mighty Patch ones.
I made this egg and sweet potato dish that came out great, so I’ve already made it a few more times.

I gave in and bought a night serum: the Trader Joe’s one. Might return it though because my face has been flakier than normal lately, so maybe that’s why? I don’t know what the hell to do with my face. Can I just let it be a face… can that be a thing?

I refuse to learn what retinol is or why I need it please don’t tell me

I did this plant hack (below) and it really helped, new leaves are growing and it’s wild.

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I got pistachio milk in a cappuccino the other day and I hope they never stop introducing new nut milks (ick, sorry that’s a terrible phrase). Just when you think they’re done, there’s another one that tastes great.
The best frozen yogurt (the really tart kind) is back at Madison Fare. Cannot recommend enough.

Levain Bakery has limited edition lemon cookies and black and white cookies right now and they’re so good. Such a perfect host/hostess gift.

I don’t usually endorse cookies that are $5+ but these are the exception to the rule

Yes the gluten-free pizza at Rubirosa is good, but do not sleep on their caesar salad. Unbelievable.
And speaking of caesars, L’Industrie Pizzeria makes a special sandwich each Wednesday so I tried their chicken caesar and it blew my mind right to pieces. I was going to request that they omit the banana peppers on it because I thought that I didn’t like them, but I kept them on anyway because maybe my tastebuds have changed (I accidentally had a black olive a few months ago and it actually tasted good??) so of course it tasted incredible. It was honestly one of the greatest sandwiches I’ve ever had in this whole city. The lesson? Maybe you don’t know everything about yourself.

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Some things I watched:
- Leaving Las Vegas - I’d never seen it before and never will again. Just awful. Anyone who liked it might be a moron.
- Black Mirror (newest season) - my favourite episodes were definitely Common People and Eulogy. The Issa Rae one was appallingly bad.

Some things I’m looking forward to this month: there’s a wedding at the end of the month that’ll be a nice weekend getaway so that’ll be fun, I really want to see the new Stranger Things on Broadway, and Marla comes for a visit! All great things.

You can read last month’s roundup over here.

April 1, 2025

The Best of March 2025

by Liz Heather in Best of NYC, Food, Movies, Personal, Recipes

Considering how bad January and February were, it’s kind of a miracle that this past month was so full of good things. I had the best birthday (of my life?) and it feels like there’s so much hope. Am I deluding myself? Anything is possible! But I’m going to try and ride this high as long as I can. Here’s what went down last month.

The best tweets of the month can be found over here.
I made these cottage cheese crackers that are ridiculously good. I’ll put the recipe below because I got it from someone’s mom on Facebook (jesus, that’s the most I-just-turned-40 statement I’ve made so far).

I brush the parchment paper with olive oil as well so that nothing sticks

Speaking of turning 40, Nathan took me to Turks and Caicos to celebrate and it was an incredible trip. I should probably do a post about it. Yeah, I’ll do that. Stay tuned.
I finally visited The New York Earth Room art exhibit that’s been going on for decades and it was very neat.

Discovered the secret to amazing chicken parm: get bone-in. Changes the entire game.
I got these brown wedge heels from Target that I am currently living in, I love them so much. Might get them in black, too. I also bought this comically large bed pillow that might fix my life.
Lord, how I missed the Hillstone caesar salad.

Nathan and I have started picking up garbage around our neighborhood twice a week and it’s been great. He got a trash grabber stick months ago, and it might seem insane but it makes us feel pretty good.
Some things I watched:
- The Monkey - hated majority of it. And I realized just how much I loathe this new genre of body-harm horror. It’s gaining traction and I can’t stand it (think Hereditary, Smile 2 etc.)
- I’m all caught up on The White Lotus and this season isn’t the greatest, so that’s been disappointing.
I’ve really been considering whether or not I should go to Dollywood this year. It’s the 40th anniversary (which we share), so that’s why I was thinking about it. Just a thought.
I saw The Jonathan Larsan Project (so good) and Buena Vista Social Club (stellar). I didn’t realize how much I really missed going to shows.

I’ve been using the Trader Joe’s facial sunscreen (the Goop dupe) for a few years now, but I saw actual proof of how good it is recently. When I was on vacation, I guess I forgot to sunscreen the very top part of my forehead and to see the difference between that small area and the rest of my sunscreened face after an afternoon in the sun? Wow. This stuff is a holy grail product.
I am in love with these duos that Target keeps releasing each season (below).

I had lunch at La Mercerie and it was good, I don’t know that I’d ever need to go back but it was fine. The older I get, the more I tend to be annoyed at trendy places.
I’m still making these GF bean muffins constantly. Yes they sound disgusting, but they might be the best chocolate chip muffins I’ve ever had. I should stop telling people that they have beans in them.
I did a spring french tip manicure and it turned out pretty good!

Some things I’m looking forward to this month: it’ll be nice to pack away my winter clothing, I have to start looking for wedding guest dresses and I’d really like to make this firecracker chicken again.

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You can read last month’s roundup over here.

March 5, 2025

The Best of January & February 2025

by Liz Heather in Food, Ideas, Links, Movies, Personal, Television

The beginning of this year has been rough to say the least. There’s no way to know when things might get easier, but in the meantime - here’s what went down these past two months.

The best tweets of January can be found here and the best tweets of February can be found here.
Very in love with this Patcha Soap Co. salt scrub I got from Healthy Planet. A salt scrub is forever a good gift, especially the Sabon ones.
I ate at the gluten-free place Gud Daae on Lakeshore and it was so good.

I’ve come to the newish conclusion that Sephora has nothing for me. Every single time I enter that store, I feel an alarming amount of rage. Stop telling women what they need.
Andrew Dismukes has been so good on SNL lately. I’m not sure how I didn’t notice this sooner.
I took my niece Maya to see Come From Away and it was even better than the New York production (maybe because the accents were better?).

I bought (and had tailored) these Gap jeans and I also bought a pair of tan loafers. Really testing out a new aesthetic here.
I finally tried out the Mel Brooks idea of slicing a bagel into three parts instead of two and I feel enlightened.

Mel Brooks is a genius mainly because of this idea

I took the kids to a maple syrup farm (Elliot Tree Farm) because it should be law that every Canadian child must see how sap is made at some point. Of course their gift shop had some gems (below).

I cancelled my Costco membership because I’m trying to support less American companies, so I found Bulk Mart (which is Canadian) and it’s great so far.
Some things I watched:
- The Substance - such a great movie. The sounds/audio was brutal to hear at times, but all in all one of the best movies of last year for sure.
- Babygirl - loved it.
- Jerry Springer: Fights, Camera, Action (documentary) - pretty despicable, hard to watch.
- Child Star (documentary) - it was good, but there was too much of a focus on Demi Lovato (which makes sense because she made it) but I was expecting less of her.
- Enlightened - I hated Laura Dern’s character so much that it made it hard to watch.
- The Apprentice (movie) - meh. But Jeremy Strong was fantastic.
- The Resort - the first half of the series was good, but then it took a turn.
- Mommy Meanest - I love watching a bad Lifetime TV movie maybe once a year.
- Little Women (the 90s one) - how have I never seen this before? Absolutely loved it.
- Big Little Lies - I was expecting more since the cast is so wild, but it kind of sucked. I really don’t think Laura Dern is a good actress and the writing was so bad.
- Succession (rewatch) - Logan is so much funnier upon second viewing, I didn’t notice that before.
- Lost (rewatch) - still great. Still can’t really explain the ending.
- The Last Showgirl - I do like Pamela Anderson but wow is she a bad actress. Also Jamie Lee Curtis overacts in every single thing she does these days and Bautista was so hollow. The script was awful, but since it had a nepo director it’s not surprising that it wasn’t good. I did like that I could tell it was shot at the Rio in Vegas but otherwise, hard pass.
- Heart Eyes - love Devon Sawa, but this was nothing special. I do love a themed horror movie always, though.
- The White Lotus - god, this season sucks so far. It’s just so slow, I can’t stand it.

It would be insane if I didn’t mention it here, but Baby Dog passed away in January and everything collapsed around me. It happened quickly, but I was with her until the end and it’s hard to speak about it at all even now. Every time it snows it makes me think of her so of course there was record snowfall this year. It still doesn’t feel real, so I’m just trying to take it day by day.

January 3, 2025

December Dalliances 2024

by Liz Heather in Food, Ideas, Links, Movies, Personal, Reviews

The last monthly post of a year that was intense and full of change! Here’s what went down last month.

The best tweets of December can be found over here.
I recapped how my autumn list of things to do went.
The President’s Choice Elk Crossing ice cream is unbelievably good.

The restaurant Earl’s put out a cookbook and I can’t stop making their chicken hunan kung pao.
I found out that the house from the movie The Santa Clause is in Oakville, so I had to drive past it. And look at their perfect decorations.

I found a dupe recipe for the Levain dark chocolate peanut butter chip cookies and I truly can’t tell the difference.

Got a Philly cheesesteak from Gladiator Burger and wow. Will definitely return.
I will fully admit that crumbl cookies are overrated, but their monthly dessert specials are wondrous. Look at this eggnog tres leche (below). She’s beautiful.

I perused the new Half Baked Harvest cookbook and it’s absolutely nothing revolutionary, there’s a cheeseburger pasta in it for christsake. I still think we should force a limit on how many books a food blogger can release.
I did make these white wine mushroom stuffed shells and they were (as most HBH recipes are) probably too cheesy, but the vegetarians liked them so I guess it was a win.

I also made this slow cooker roast and it was so easy and perfect for lunch sandwiches on Christmas day. And secured the greatest (Canadian)grocery store cake: the caramel crunch cake.

Ate at this great Mexican place The Mule in Hamilton.

Some things I watched:
- Die Hard - yes, it’s insane that I’ve never seen it before now. So good.
- Challengers - LOVED Zendaya’s character. Second favourite movie of the year (first was Anora). Only question was HOW was that hotel bed that big??
- Jagged Edge - pretty good. I love this genre of movies (80s/early 90s thriller/mystery).
- Carry On - anticlimactic ending, but overall not terrible.
- Nosferatu - liked it! Honestly it could’ve just been the fun of who I saw it with, but truly hard to tell.
These little guys (below) continue to make me smile each day.

Some things that I’m looking forward to this month: I’m going to start using this first-of-the-month checklist again and I’ll recap my resolutions from last year as well as make new 2025 ones.

If you have any interest in the other monthly roundups of 2024, they can be found here: November, October, September, August, July, June, May, April, March, February and January.

December 2, 2024

Navigating November 2024

by Liz Heather in Food, Ideas, Links, Movies, Personal, Recipes

All of the Christmas gifts are bought and under the tree, why the hell don’t I do this every year? People are mean in those mall parking lots, so I’m grateful to be done the shopping portion of the season. Now there’s just decorating and cooking left, which is kind of the best part. Here’s what went down last month!

The best tweets of November can be found over here.
I read and reviewed Anna Marie' Tendler’s memoir Men Have Called Her Crazy.
Got an oil change for $66 with no appointment at Royal Lube (perfect name, no notes) in Mississauga. Am I nuts or is that really good in 2024?
I tried the 10 3 2 1 method and it sucked! Completely did not work for me.
I made these ricotta beef shells that were good, but honestly a lasagna would be more satisfying.
Will never tire of my favourite chicken marsala recipe.

Chicken marsala over tres leche mashed potatoes

I took a day trip to Buffalo (and woof, I really don’t like that city), but I’m happy to report that the Wegman’s ultimate chocolate cake remains the greatest cake in the history of grocery store cakes.
I made tres leche mashed potatoes and they were phenomenal. Making them again for Christmas.

Hot take: suburban Targets are too big. It’s enough already.
I got a tub of white chocolate raspberry butter from a holiday market and it’s changed all of our lives, it’s so good. (It’s made me want to make a bunch of different butter combinations for the holidays, so I’ll report back.)
Love a seasonal flavour and these (below) are pretty great.

Some things I watched:
- Perfect Days - pretty long, but liked it.
- Getting Lost (the documentary about the show Lost) - look, I was a fan of the show but I wasn’t a superfan so maybe I’m not the key demographic here. It definitely could’ve been edited/shortened, but I did love Kate’s explanation of the finale.
- The Martha documentary on Netflix - loved it. Yes, she’s a bitch (with the way she talks to her staff) but she’s insanely rich so I don’t see why that’s surprising. Nice people aren’t exceedingly rich, it’s that simple.
- The Weekend Away (Netflix) - not terrible!
- Anora - best movie of the year, hands down.
- Cast Away - god, it’s still such a great movie, especially this monologue.
- The John Mulaney SNL - okay, the man is not funny. I’d say it’s bewildering that he’s so popular but so many famous comedians are terrible…? So this makes sense?
- Bowen Yang in this Shrek sketch is so goddam funny, I’ve watched it five times.

Some things I’m looking forward to this month: cannot wait for that first snowfall, there’s a maple syrup museum I want to take the kids to, already bought my bayberry candles for Christmas Eve, I’d love to make homemade ricotta after watching Ina do it and I will definitely be watching some of these movies.

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If you’ve got any interest in reading last month’s roundup, you can see what went down in October over here.

November 5, 2024

October Occurrences 2024

by Liz Heather in Food, Halloween, Movies, Personal, Recipes

I love Octobers but I’m grateful to be moving on to the holiday season. Halloween was so good this year. I used a fog machine (it’ll now have to be a staple each year) and a bluetooth speaker that played horror movie soundtracks and it was. the. best. Here’s what else went on last month.

You might think you’re better than fake tattoos, I assure you that you’re not

I made a list of my favourite Halloween tweets.
Put up some new Halloween decorations.

The best tweets of the month can be found here.
I made this apple crisp coffee cake, which was fantastic. I’d prefer more crumble than cake, though.

I tried the new spicy all dressed chips and it’s a big meh. All dressed is already so perfect, they really should just leave them alone.
I got a ton of old VHS and camcorder tapes converted to digital at Digital Treasures and they did such a good job.
I’ve been constantly wearing the Anne Marie Beretta coat I got last month at the vintage clothing show.

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I hadn’t had a DQ cake in years, so I bought one and it remains as good as ever.
I don’t love donuts (too doughy), but a holiday themed donut? Obviously I'll get those.

Thanksgiving donuts from Sanremo’s in Etobicoke, Ontario

Thanksgiving was really great, if not a little quieter this year. The next-day sandwich was one for the books. (If I started a business that solely made these sandwiches and just tried out new versions each month, could that work? Call it Turkey Time? Patent pending.)

Went to Downey’s for their pumpkin donuts (for a donut hater, I buy an alarming amount) and got this apple pie flavoured milk. It was a bit gross, but you have to try new seasonal items. It’s law.

Took my parents on an autumn drive through Belfountain and our car broke down in the middle of nowhere! It was exciting.

I went to Ottawa for the first time! The drive was intensely beautiful. My dumbass didn’t realize how close Quebec was, otherwise I would’ve made sure to get a poutine across the water. Next time.

Stopped at The Big Apple on the way back and just wow. I’d never been there before, so I loved it.

I bought a few new pairs of bootcut jeans (I know, pretty cool) and had them all tailored. They fit perfectly. I will tailor my pants for the rest of my life now.
October sunrises >>

Some things I watched:
- Nobody Wants This: other than some really bad dialogue, I’d definitely watch season two.
- English Teacher: best new show on TV, hands down.
- Only Murders in the Building: good season, not great. Martin Short will be the main reason I keep watching.
- The Blair Witch Project: I got my niece Maya to watch it and she loved it. A perfect horror movie.
- The Return of the Living Dead: okay, it’s obviously bad but fun bad.
- The Bob’s Burgers Halloween episode this year was awful?? What the hell?
- I’ve been on a real Twilight Zone binge and this quote, “As long as there are men, there cannot be peace.” PREACH.

Some things I’m looking forward to this month: good god, I don’t even know. The election is today so… let’s just wait and see what happens before I look forward to anything.

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If you’ve got any interest in reading last month’s roundup, you can see what went down in September over here.

October 3, 2024

September Shenanigans 2024

by Liz Heather in Beauty, Food, Ideas, Links, Movies, Personal, Products, Quotes, Recipes, Television

Welcome to the absolute best time of year.

The best tweets of the month can be found over here.
I wrote about going to Cooperstown, New York.
I compiled my favourite summer photos.
I recapped how my summer list went.
I made an autumn list of things I’d like to do.
The AirTrain at JFK was half price for the entire summer! Am I the only one who finds that crazy? In a city where everything costs more with each passing day. Blown away by that. It’s back to the ridiculous/normal pricing now, but still.
I went to my first dog swim event (!) and it was absolutely heaven on earth. At the end of summer, public pools open up their pools on the last swim day of the season to let dogs go swimming and it’s as great as it sounds. (Baby Dog is too delicate to partake, but we watched from a safe distance.)
Forever a lover of autumn mums. And $9 for 9” ones at Home Depot? Get the hell out of here with that pricing. Amazing.

I’ve been using GrandeLASH for almost a month now and I’m not really noticing that much of a difference, so if this doesn’t work I’ll give Revitalash a try and if that doesn’t work? I think I can officially say goodbye to lash serums at last. It’s too exhausting. I can’t care about tiny little pieces of hair for the rest of my life.
I will never shut up about how incredible this foot peel is from Target. I only need to use it twice a year and it gives you BABY SOFT feet.
Went to Dyments Farm in Dundas to try their burger and whoa. Definitely worth the drive.

In love with everything at Aerie right now, they’re reminding me of early Aritzia pieces (at the old Aritzia prices) and I should really shut up about it before it becomes like current Aritzia and therefore is way too expensive.
Came across a new way to do beach waves with a straightener and it totally works.

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Are you aware that Staples recycles all old electronics? I brought in some old printers and it’s way easier than taking it to a dump.
Is The Ordinary a con? I have never had a positive experience with any of their products. Even the name makes me think they’re just messing with us?
Tried and absolutely loved the gluten-free Costco frozen pizza. Makes no sense.
The smash burgers at Oklahoma Burgers in Mississauga are decadent as hell.

Went to the Toronto Vintage Clothing Show for the first time in years and got an insanely nice coat. I only want fun coats for the rest of my life. Also got a mini glass bottle of perfume from the 40s to stay in my purse that was $5.

Perfumes at the Toronto Vintage Clothing Show

In love with this Simons belt.
I made these turkey meatballs from the LCBO magazine Food & Drink and they were pretty disappointing. Must remember to not trust all their recipes.
The dark chocolate pistachios from Trader Joe’s are unholy. Could eat bags and bags of them.
Ridiculously in love with the Whole Foods pumpkin bites. A perfect autumn bite.

Some things I watched:
- The Perfect Couple: Okay, I could argue for an hour about how bad this was. Yes, a whodunit is fun. But that’s where the fun ended. It was so badly written and terribly shot. God, anything can be made these days.
- The Trini episode of Atlanta: what a great episode. Makes me want to watch the rest of the show.
- Only Murders in the Building: Really liking this season. The Perfect Strangers moments? Wonderful. I kind of need Richard Kind and Martin Short in a scene together soon though (Clifford reunion!).
- English Teacher: best new show I’ve seen in SUCH a long time. I love the kid Jeff. The music choices are so good. So many good lines, I can’t even quote them all.
- Mamma Mia: I’d never seen it, so we put it on and yikes. I truly hate singing in (most) movies. Fast-forwarded all the songs. Other than that, not a terrible movie.
- Emily in Paris: this tweet really sums up the show.
- Transformers: Rise of the Beasts: Only my ten year old nephew could get me to watch something like this. It wasn’t terrible! Weird to hear Pete Davidson in it, but definitely not the worst thing I’ve ever seen.
- Hustlers: Not good. But Mister Bruce was the best part.
- Rewatched: The Hand That Rocks The Cradle, Dangerous Minds, Barbarian, Old. All still great.
- I’m watching tons of Twilight Zones episodes each night and this quote (below) from the episode Passage on the Lady Anne just swallowed me up.

“Love has its own particular point of view. It sees everything larger than life. Nothing is too ornate, too fanciful, too dramatic. Love demands the theatrical, and then transfigures it. It turns the grotesque into the lovely, as a child does. With it, we can see what we wish to see in other people. Without it, we can’t see anything at all. We can search forever, and never find.”

— The Twilight Zone

Some things I’m looking forward to this month: finishing up my Halloween costume, cooking everything for Thanksgiving, making the leftover sandwich and I really want to see the movie Hush.

If you’ve got any interest in reading last month’s roundup, you can see what went down in August over here.

September 1, 2024

August Actions 2024

by Liz Heather in Beauty, Best of NYC, Drinks, Food, Ideas, Links, Movies, Personal, Recipes

SUMMER IS OVER! Extremely pumped to say goodbye to August. So many things are changing right now and I kind of can’t wait for what’s ahead. But before that, here were the highlights of the month.

Finished my Summer Saturdays series.
The best tweets of the month can be found over here.
Why don’t all cheese boards have corresponding cheeses labels?? SOMEBODY PUT ME IN CHARGE OF SOMETHING.

In love with these blue sky bran muffins. Who have I become? I like her?
The Freshly Brewed Coffee candle at Bath & Body Works smells like heaven on earth.

I found Walla Walla onions at my farmer’s market and they remain the greatest onion on the scene today.
My friend Richard made the best tomato pie I’ve ever tasted.

I got the new Alex Trebek Jeopardy stamps and they’re a bit disappointing. I was hoping for more than just one design.
Marla came for a visit and we did so many fun things. We saw Suffs on Broadway, ate at Thyme & Tonic (incredible), tried on a million gorgeous things at both locations of Beacon’s Closet, we rode the Staten Island Ferry, ate at the always-great Rubirosa, went to Little Island for the first time, went to some of the Chelsea Thursday galleries and we perused Chelsea Market so we obviously had to get some Seed + Mill.

A rat scared us out of Central Park approx. five seconds after this photo was taken

Manhattan skyline from the (free) Staten Island Ferry

Seed + Mill now has a chocolate drizzle option

I read Jennette McCurdy’s book and it was too real and too good.
My favourite pesto recipe is the How Sweet Eats one, but with walnuts instead of pine nuts.
Summer is the time to make peach daiquiris and this peach rose slushy.

Fell in love with the restaurant Hillstone. On a mission now to visit all the locations eventually. The best parts about this place are the chilled salad plates, the chilled martini glasses that are replaced midway through your drink, an insane French dip sandwich (David Chang says that this sandwich “haunts him” and he’s right), a wildly good chicken caesar salad, servers only have three tables at a time so they can really focus on each customer, they don’t have food runners or bussers, the tables are drilled into the ground so there aren’t any wobbly ones, there’s freshly squeezed orange juice AND each table is designed to feel like it’s in its very own little VIP section. So impressed by the level of thoughtfulness at this place, I love it so much.

And speaking of hospitality, I read something recently that explains why I think I love restaurants so much. I’m the one who cooks at home (which I enjoy), but it’s nice to escape that sometimes and have someone take care of me in that way. It’s such a simple thought, but it blew my mind for a minute.
I finally deep cleaned my beauty blender by putting Dawn in some boiled water and then I let the sponge sit in that mixture for five minutes before rinsing in water. Reddit has all the answers.
I found a Sabon body scrub on sale at Marshall’s, which reminded me how much I love any Sabon products.
I’ve been living in the Essie colour Seas The Day.

Annoyance of the day: I absolutely hate that all brow pencils now come in that little mechanical tube (that always breaks). Remember when the Anastasia brow pencil was actually a real pencil that you could sharpen?? We’ve strayed too far from the light of god. It’s impossible to find a real, high quality pencil anymore.
Nathan and I spent our anniversary in Cooperstown, New York to go to the incredible Baseball Hall of Fame, so I’ll do a post about that later this week.
Denny’s has a Beetlejuice-themed menu right now that is a full party, even if it does sound somewhat gross.
Loved reading Pete Wells’ final NY Times piece.
Some things I watched:
- Patriot Games - wow. Love 90s movies like this.
- Six Days, Seven Nights - even Harrison Ford can’t save this movie.
- Trap - I liked the first two thirds of it, but everything went downhill as soon as they left the stadium. This review sums up my feelings almost precisely.
- Falling Down - great movie.
- Wall Street - weird that I’d never seen it before, Martin Sheen was a smokeshow.
- Consenting Adults - great idea for a movie.
- Longlegs - love an original horror script.

I would normally list the things I’m looking forward to this month, but things are changing so fast right now that I have no idea what the end of the month will look like. I’m hopeful and excited, but I’m also terrified and I sort of just want to let this month happen.

If you’ve got any interest in reading last month’s roundup, you can see what went down in July over here.

August 4, 2024

July Jiffs 2024

by Liz Heather in Best of NYC, Family, Food, Links, Movies, Personal, Recipes, Television, Travel

I might have to stop complaining about how I’m not a summer person because this past month was such a memorable one. Here’s what went down last month!

Nathan made Variety’s 10 Comics To Watch list this year!
I continued my Summer Saturdays series because apparently I’m obsessed with summer?
The best tweets of the month can be found over here. I also made a list of my favourite summer tweets.
I wrote about my favourite caesar salad dressing recipe in honour of its 100th birthday.
I tried the soft serve from Seed + Mill and it was unbelievably good. Top three in NYC, hands down.

Soft serve from Seed + Mill, Chelsea Market

I finally got to go lane swimming in Mississauga and it was all that I’d hoped it would be and so much more. Fuck Eric Adams for cancelling the lap swims in NYC for yet another summer.
The watermelon sangria at Bite is summer in a glass.
I finally visited the food hall at Queensboro Plaza and the options looked pretty good! The chicken caesar wrap at Bobwhite Counter was decent, but it’ll always amaze me when places don’t make their own croutons. It’s one tiny little step that makes or breaks it.

The coronation chicken salad at Nomad Sandwiches is too good. Cold, curried chicken is not on enough menus in this city.
I just saw an ad for this, but Arby’s has a burger now?? Am I the only one this offends?? Their whole thing is that they DON’T do burgers?? That roast beef and cheddar is better than any fast food burger, what the hell is going on? I can handle a lot of things (really I can), but this crosses a line.
A reel told me to squeeze lemon on top of watermelon, so I did and it was fantastic.
I went to Canada for a little bit since the kids are off for summer break and I think I’m onto something here: yardwork is fun when it’s not your own house.

I used a screwdriver to do this and I’m kinda proud of that fact?

One of my most beloved hobbies? Before/after photoshoots, apparently.

Went to Blue Mountain on a small trip with my family and it was perfect. We swam so much (once in the rain, and I hope everyone swims in the rain at least once in their life) and we also rode the Ridge Runner Mountain Coaster (something that’s been on my list for years), which was so much fun. I also won’t disclose how many times I went to the frozen yogurt place Menchies.

Before the Ridge Runner Mountain Coaster

On the drive back from Blue Mountain, we found a farmer’s market-type store in hopes of finding some sponge toffee and dreams can come true.

Ate at Lucia in Toronto and it wasn’t anything special, which was a bit disappointing but the company was everything I wanted so that made up for it.

Made these ricotta meatballs that turned out great, if not a bit too soft.
We went to Ribfest and I tried my first blooming onion. It was absolutely unreal. How did it take me this long to try one. Also got an oxtail poutine and (finally) the tri-colour popsicle I’ve been waiting on since last summer.

There are cathedrals everywhere for those with eyes to see

I wanted this so badly, I didn’t even care how bad my nails looked

The passport office in Mississauga is such a nightmare, it literally took four hours to get renewed (and that’s only because I showed up two hours before it even opened).
Tried this soft foot reel I saw (below) and it worked pretty well! I think you have to do it multiple times a week to really see longterm results, though.

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Went to Spirit Tree Estate Cidery again with my niece Tianna and it remains great. Their daily soup is the main attraction here (we got the seafood chowder).

We also went to Activate again and I think I enjoyed it even more than last time. Obsessed with the hoops room. Makes me wish I had a basketball net.

Went to the Asian Night Market in Mississauga with Harmeet and we got the cold noodles, which were spicy/great. Afterward we went to the Mexican restaurant in the food hall section of Square One (La Carnita) and had such a terrible experience. The short ribs we ordered were awful and our waiter absolutely hated us. And then we went next door to Farzi Cafe, where the drinks were fine but insanely overpriced. What the hell is going on at Square One?
I finally got Baby Dog in a kiddie pool and she could actually doggy paddle. It was the cutest thing anyone has ever seen.
I just learned about the ready-made sandwiches at Lazar Bakery in Mississauga and my lunches will never be the same again.
The foam soaps are the main reason I go to Bath & Body Works, but their bar soaps last such a long time. If you live in the United States then you should definitely get their app - they give you at least one free item every few weeks.
Baskin-Robbins rainbow sherbert continues to solve all.

I know it’s early, but the pumpkin pie M&Ms are outrageously good.

Some things I watched:
- The Bear (season three): Cons first. Okay, I hated the first episode but it’s the weakest one of the whole season. Some of the dialogue is so badly written, it’s hard to watch sometimes. Why the hell was John Cena in it? He isn’t a good actor, let’s cut the shit. Now pros. Ebon is flawless. The Napkins episode was so well written. Jon Bernthal is such a great actor. The Al-Anon support group scene was so good. My jaw dropped at Josh Hartnett making an appearance, I’ll continue to love his renaissance. And I know I’ve complained about the overacting of Jamie Lee Curtis from last season, but I thought the birth episode was the best one of the entire season. That whole episode just captured mothers and daughters so well and how we see that our mothers fail us so much because our expectations of them are too insanely high so when they fall flat of those expectations, how crushing it can be to realize that they’re just human. That episode alone is why I’ll keep watching the show. I do think that a lot can be done towards the development of characters so that we have the time to care about them in the ways that the writers want us to, but there are these pocket episodes that are just so alarmingly true and good. It’s a fantastic show with absolute faults, but the reviews of this season were way too harsh.
- All of the Naked Gun movies (rewatch): Okay these movies really hold up well. It was too much fun to watch them with the kids who actually really laughed and enjoyed them too. Romeo even referenced one scene weeks later to laugh about it, my heart swelled to say the least.
- Blowout: It started out interesting and then took a sharp turn, hard pass.
- Sabrina (rewatch): I was on a Harrison Ford kick and would’ve settled for anything, so this was nice to see again.
- Twisters (theatres): I really wanted to hate it, but it was a party.
- Creep (rewatch): Still great!
- Mulan (live action): Rome insisted on us watching this and it wasn’t bad! I’m pretty anti-live-action, but this was surprisingly good.
- I Know What You Did Last Summer (rewatch): Love a summer horror movie. There needs to be more seasonal horror movies.
- The Craft (rewatch): I always forget how much I hate the bug stuff at the end, but it’s still a solid 90s movie.

Some things I’m looking forward to this month: my dear friend Marla is coming to visit (!), cannot wait to see Trap next week, I’m keeping my eye out for any corn based seasonal dishes at the restaurants I love and I can’t wait to start preparations on this year’s costume…

If you’ve got any interest in reading last month’s roundup, you can see what went down in June over here.

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July 3, 2024

June Jaunts 2024

by Liz Heather in Best of NYC, Family, Food, Links, Movies, Personal, Products, Quotes, Recipes

“And so with the sunshine and the great bursts of leaves growing on the trees, just as things grow in fast movies, I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer.”

— F. Scott Fitzgerald

Truly a great June. I haven’t eaten as many strawberries as I’d have hoped, so I need to make that happen. Other than that, I might actually be excited about summer? Here’s what went down last month:

The best tweets of the month can be seen over here.
I started up my Summer Saturdays series again!
I finally made my way to Smorgasburg in the city.
I recapped how my spring list went.
Made this year’s new summer list of things I want to do.
I went to visit my parents to celebrate my dad’s 101st birthday (!), which was so great. Always love a spring visit.

Ate an incredible conch salad from this Bahamian place Old Nassau in Toronto. My parents loved the conch fritters, too.
Went to Corleone’s in Mississauga for a quick lunch and got the junior meatball. Nothing spectacular but decent.
My oldest niece Tianna graduated from teacher’s college!! Beyond proud of this beauty.

And speaking of Tianna, look at this gorgeous card she drew (below). How on earth did I not know she had this talent?? Really blows my mind (in a good way) when there are still new things to learn about the people who make up the fabric of your life.

Got dinner at Golden Diner and my god, those pancakes aren’t messing around. And that’s coming from a person who absolutely never orders/eats/likes/tolerates pancakes. They also had incredibly crispy home fries, and even the caesar salad was good if not a little too overdressed. Definitely skip the chicken katsu, though.

I’ll never stop loving dingy carnivals, you know the ones I mean. Where everything it set up overnight. I’m not sure if I had ever rode the Superman ride but it fully rocked my core. (Here’s a great (updated often) list of carnivals in the NYC area.)

I watched the new Jiminy Glick clips and when he asked Nick Kroll where he was when “Queen Latifah’s show got cancelled” I fully lost it. So damn funny.
Found a lovely little bar inside Hotel Rivington with a $10 cocktail happy hour. Absolutely will return.
I promise to stop mentioning it soon (not yet), but I can’t describe how much I love the Scrubbing Bubbles Bleach Cleaner for bathrooms. It makes my life so much easier. (Don’t feel sadness for me for that last sentence, it truly brings me joy!)
I made this lemon cake and it sucked! Do you know how depressing it is to make a lackluster baked good? So unbelievably disappointing.
My summer go-to dessert recipe? The Magnolia Bakery banana pudding. Gotta remember to double up on the Nilla wafers next time.

The best cubano sandwich ever is at La Cubana in Toronto. I’ll forever love that neighborhood (Roncesvalles).
My dear friend Richard made me (a Reno specialty?) spaghetti salad and fruit pizza and both were too good. Nobody cooks for their friends anymore! Can we please bring this back?!

Me with Richard & Paul’s dog, Hatcher and their insane view

Finally learned how to cook perfect bacon in the oven.
Really liked this steak marinade.
I read and reviewed Priscilla Presley’s book.
Cannot express how glad I am that I took some of the kids to the Ontario Science Center recently. It’s horrifying to think that it might not be there anymore. So many memories in that place.

Visited Shukette again and it remains amazing. The only bad thing we ordered were the squash blossoms (they just weren’t crispy and the batter tasted old), but bury me in the toum (whipped garlic).

Went to Ray’s Candy Store in the East Village and got an Obama coffee with vanilla ice cream. Fully recommend.

Got the tres leche ice cream at Bad Habit (which closes for good later this month) and it’s so smart that they sell freezer transport bags (why don’t all ice cream places do this?).

Two things I can’t stop making:
- Hummus Dip: To store-bought hummus, I add chopped red onion, cucumbers, feta and tomatoes. It’s unreal. It’d also be good as a spread on a sandwich.
- Tuna Salad: To canned tuna, I mix in red onion, dijon, a small amount of mayo, grated garlic, sliced pickles, salt and pepper. Then I put it on top of a bun that’s been toasted with garlic butter and then broiled with cheddar on top. Phenomenal.
Some things I watched:
- What Jennifer Did: Jesus! How did I not hear about this awful story?
- I Saw The TV Glow: wow, did I hate it. Especially since the reviews made it seem incredible.
- Meg 2: The Trench: couldn’t get through more than half an hour, just an abomination.
- The Cannonball Run 1 & 2: I watched these movies over and over as a kid and I was feeling nostalgic this week so I put them on and OH MY GOD I finally figured out why I’m obsessed with finding the right zippered jumpsuit. (See the scene below.)

A gentle reminder: your beach body is already here.

Some things I’m looking forward to this month: I can’t wait to finally go lane swimming I feel like I’ve been talking about this for months I’m so sorry if you’ve heard me say it a million times, the cheeseburger dumplings have returned to Mimi Cheng’s so that’s definitely on the list, I can’t wait to see my family a ton next week when I visit again, I’ll probably watch at least a few of these summer classics and these summer vacations movies, Nathan has some crazy big news later this month that I’m so proud of and I’d really love to finally get Baby Dog in a kiddie pool to see how she likes the water.

If you’ve got any interest in reading last month’s roundup, you can see what went down in May over here.